Dancing Under the Moonlit Stars
by nnicolexxx
Summary: Luna Lovegood is the strange girl everyone makes fun of. Neville Longbottom is the shy boy everyone ignores. She knew there was something special about him the first time she met him. He fell in love with her quirks and eccentricities. When the stars align, perhaps there's something more for the two misfits. [Two-Part Nuna Drabble]
1. A Starry Night

"Neville, c'mon," Luna whispered quietly, giggling. "I have something amazing to show you."

He was still half asleep as he laid on the couch in the common room where he'd fallen asleep studying. He mumbled something under his breath, and as he realized who was there, he shot up, sending his textbook and papers flying. "Wha...Luna! What are you doing here?" Neville asked, surprised.

"I want to show you something. I was outside, and there's something you have to see," she said, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"It's like the middle of the night," Neville groaned. "What in the world were you doing outside? Is that even allowed? Isn't that against school rules?"

"No one will notice us. The only teacher on hallway duty right now is Snape. We'll be fine," Luna reassured him.

"Snape?!" Neville almost shouted. "We're supposed to be safe with Snape lurking around the hallways? Oh, please, if he catches me, I'm actually going to become potions ingredients," he whispered furiously.

"His goal in life is to torture Gryffindors, mostly me and Harry. If he finds us, you'll probably be fine, but me? I'm not seeing tomorrow's sunrise, trust me on that," Neville said angrily.

"Hey, calm down. I promise you we won't be caught," Luna said softly, surprised at Neville's outburst.

He sighed. "Fine." He got up reluctantly and followed Luna out the door. "So how did you get in here?" he asked again, realizing she'd never answered his question earlier.

"The Fat Lady and I have conversations quite often," Luna answered vaguely.

Neville nodded, deciding that was about as much of an answer he was going to get out of Luna. They made their way all the way down the stairs and outside without any sign of Snape or anyone else. He let out a sigh of relief when they stepped outside.

"It's so nice outside!" he exclaimed.

Luna leaned over and put her finger over his lips. "Shh. C'mon, it's over here," she said, grabbing Neville's hand and skipping over to where a faint outline could be seen.

"Where are we going?" Neville asked. He didn't have to wait long to find out.

She quickly ran up the little mountain, and Neville followed behind her. When they got to the top, he could see exactly why Luna had been so excited. It was breathtaking.

As he looked around in wonder, Luna let out a chime of laughter at his amazement. "Wonderful, isn't it?" she commented, smiling.

"It's...it's beautiful," Neville murmured. "How did you find this?"

"I like to come here sometimes when I can't sleep at night. I used to just wander around outside until I found this. And wait, it gets better," she said excitedly.

She laid down and motioned for Neville to do the same. "The view here is quite spectacular," she said.

Neville sat down next to her and laid down next to her. He turned his gaze to the sky, and he had to agree. It truly was quite spectacular. He could almost pretend the entire universe was spread out before them, with all the stars twinkling in the night sky. It was almost the full moon, and it seemed to be shining brighter than ever.

Luna slowly moved her hand until their fingers were touching, and hesitantly, Nevilly gently held her hand. He turned his gaze from the spectacular universe to the even more extraordinary person right next to him.

As he stared at her, he felt a sense of peace come over him. It was like at that exact moment, everything in his life came together. It was the perfect moment, almost frozen in time. The moonlight reflected off of Luna's pale hair, making it look silver.

He could only think about how lucky he was to have such an amazing person in his life. She was so beautiful, inside and out, and all he could think was, "I love you." That quickly brought him out of his tranquil state of mind when he realized he had said that out loud.

All he felt was panic, and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He looked over at Luna, who was still laying down, her hair spread out in waves around her. Her eyes were closed, and she was smiling.

"I love you, too," she said quietly, after a very long moment of silence. At least, it seemed quite long to Neville.

He let out a deep breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Everything, right in this moment, is actually perfect," he whispered.

"It's a magical place up here. You leave all your troubles down below, and up here, it's just you and the stars," Luna replied.

"The moonlit stars," Neville said quietly. He had no idea where it came from, but it just seemed like the right thing to say.

"There's a lovely place a little over there, 'The Field of Singing Birds'. The trees form an open circle that you can see the moonlit stars from. Care for some midnight dancing?" Luna asked, giggling.

"Oh, why not," Neville responded. He propped himself up on his elbow and looked at Luna, who still had her eyes closed.

"I mean, if I've taken away anything from astrology, it appears the stars have aligned, which tells me...that tonight would be the perfect night to dance under some moonlit stars," Neville grinned.

Luna finally opened her eyes. "You're such a dork," she teased him. "Alright, let's go!"

Neville was about to offer her his hand to help her up, but she lept up and was down the hill before he knew it. He ran down after her, feeling the adrenaline and exhilaration just from running down the giant hill (and maybe some other factors…). It was a wondrous feeling.

 _ **A/N: This is a short excerpt from a Nuna fanfic I attempted to write for NaNo 2015, and it's one of my favorite scenes that I wrote. The second part will be posted very soon! Reviews are always appreciated :)**_


	2. A Field of Wonders

"Hey! Wait up!" he called out.

"Oh, hurry up!" she called back to him.

For a moment he thought she was about to lead them into the Forbidden Forest, before she took a tiny path off to the side.

He followed her, not really having any other choice. "Are you sure this is the right way?" he asked nervously, as he crashed into tree branches and almost tripped over multiple roots.

"Positive!" Luna called back.

When they finally emerged into the field, Neville had to admit the roots and branches were worth it. How Luna's hair stayed perfect, he had no idea. Meanwhile, his hair was all over the place with leaves and tiny twigs scattered throughout.

He could hear why they called it the 'Field of Singing Birds'. All around was the melodious harmony of birds, almost like a choir. It was strange, yet soothing.

"Look up," Luna told him.

He did, and the sight that awaited him was hypnotizing. There seemed to be something special, something magical about this field. The stars and all the colors of the night sky swirled together into something magnificent, something that simply couldn't be described with words.

"Care to dance?" Luna asked.

"Of course," Neville whispered, still awe-struck at the sheer impressiveness of everything around him.

She took his hand, and slowly, they started spinning around the field. Back in the Great Hall, during the ball, everything had seemed so claustrophobic. But out here, in the magic of the field, everything was free.

Neville let himself spin through the field with Luna, both of them letting of laughs of happiness as they danced (and stumbled, even fell, quite a few times) under the moonlit stars.

And before they knew it, they could see the sun starting to come up. Neville was amazed at how fast time seemed to fly, but Luna knew just how special magic could be.

They were currently lying down next to each other under a giant tree that stood in the middle of the field, catching their breath.

"We should watch the sunrise," Neville said quietly.

"I agree," Luna commented.

"Mountain? Or here?" Neville asked.

"Hm...You pick," Luna replied. "It's quite a wonderful sight no matter where we are," she said thoughtfully.

"Let's stay here," Neville murmured, feeling tired.

"Sounds good," Luna agreed.

They laid there in silence, their breathing the only sound that could be heard. Even the birds were quiet now. It was that moment between night and day, the moment just before the sun rose, when everything was completely still. It was the type of moment that simply passed by for many people.

Everything was peaceful, tranquil. It was the moment when the world was in harmony.

"The last time I watched the sunrise, it was a few months ago in the summer. I climbed onto the roof and ended up falling. That sort of ruined the view. And the experience," Luna said, after a while.

Neville wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. "Oh."

"I suppose it could have been worse, since I only broke my arm. It would have been very unfortunate if I broke my neck or my head split open," Luna commented.

"Er, right. Yeah, definitely good you didn't die," Neville said.

"But it was still quite unfortunate to be honest. Falling eight meters is really not an enjoyable experience," Luna said.

"I can imagine," Neville said, grimacing as he thought of the time his Great-Uncle Algie had tossed him out the window to see his accidental magic. Thankfully, his accidental magic finally decided it was time to work, but he couldn't say feeling sheer fear and terror while falling some nine meters was a fun experience.

Neither said anything for a while after that, and slowly, the sun started to come up. The wait had definitely been worth it.

"It's really something else, isn't it?" Neville commented.

"I've tried painting the sky many times, but I've never been able to perfectly capture the colors," Luna murmured.

"Isn't that the point, though? The sky isn't perfect. Just look at it, all the colors are just splattered together, but they come together to form something beautiful. And everyone sees something different.

"I always thought it was your opportunity to show others how you see the world. Everyone sees the world differently, so if you all paint the exact same thing, well, it's no longer special. Art is a beautiful way to express the way you see the world," Neville said.

"I've never thought of it that way," Luna said. "I've always tried to make it perfect, or get the blending just right. You're right, sometimes you just have to focus on the big picture," Luna said.

"I should think about that the next time I paint something," she said thoughtfully.

"I didn't know you painted," Neville said.

"Oh, yes, I've always been an artistic child, didn't you know?" she said sardonically, so unlike her usual tone.

"Yes, I always thought you could become the next van Gogh," Neville said.

"Slicing off an ear and committing suicide?" Luna replied.

Neville sighed. "I meant the part where he created beautiful works of art."

"I knew what you meant," Luna teased. "You've never seen my art though," she added.

"No, but I just know you're brilliant. I have a feeling." Neville smiled.

"You're the only one that's ever said something good about my art," Luna said quietly. "Whenever I tell people I paint, or at least when I used to, they would always make some sarcastic comment, like 'Oh, do you paint Crumpled-Horn Snorkacks?' and then laugh, like they said something really funny.

"I know it seems like I'm pretty chill and not usually bothered by people, but it gets to you eventually, even for me. So I stopped telling people about my art. That's why I've never really shared my art with anyone because it made me very self-conscious about my art. What if they were right, and I was the only one that thought my art looked good?" she said.

"Those people are idiots because I know for a fact that your art is something very special. I would actually love to see it, but I understand if you don't want to show me. But promise me that you won't give up on your art. It's something special, and you shouldn't let some assholes ruin your dreams," Neville said passionately.

"Thanks, Neville," Luna said, turning to look at him. "I think I really needed to hear that," she said, smiling.

"Of course, I'm only giving you a friendly reminder about something that's a fact." Neville shrugged. "You probably know how I've always been the 'awkward kid', and some people love making fun of me. That definitely takes some of your confidence away…" he said.

"I suppose we should head back up to the castle," Neville sighed, as the sun had now completely risen, and the magic of dawn was over.

"No need to sound so disappointed," Luna laughed. "Is the castle really that bad?"

Neville simply made a face in response.

"Alright, c'mon, we have to at least go back so they know we weren't murdered or something. And we've been out here the entire night. I for one could definitely use a shower," Luna said.

They stood up, brushing off the leaves and grass that had stuck to their clothes.

As they walked up to the castle, Neville started to feel the effects of staying awake all night. He could feel a wave a fatigue washing over him. Meanwhile, Luna appeared to be her normal self, wide-awake.

 _ **A/N: I hope you enjoyed this! I don't have intentions of writing a full out Nuna fanfic in the near future, but if you'd like to elaborate off of this in any way, go ahead. If you do, please link me to it because I'd love to see where you take it. If you have some time, a quick review would make this author very happy. Thanks for reading!**_


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